Ground Power Units for Aircraft/400Hz Solid-State Units/Airport PCA Units

“2012 started quite slowly, but around June, the situation changed and we ended up being at the same all time high level as the previous year”, says Vice President, International Sales & Marketing of ITW GSE AXA Power,  Mr. Poul Elvstroem. A big achievement for the whole team.

Altogether, we sold more than 1000 units in a mix between our 400 Hz and  28 VDC power supplies and the ITW GSE AXA Power Pre-conditioned Air Units (PCA). Many units were delivered to major airport projects in the UK, Russia, France and Dubai as well as Doha airport. At this stage, we may mention an extraordinary demand for 28 VDC units meaning that the actual sales were the double of our forecast.

During 2012, we installed many PCA units at airports around the world among others in Melbourne, Australia, in Bodrum, Turkey, in London Heathrow, UK, in Venice and Milan, Italy as well as in Prague, Czech Republic. Many of the same airports also bought and installed AXA 400 Hz units as part of the solution so it seems as if the Go Green on Ground concept has started kicking in.  By letting external 400 Hz solid-state power units and pre-conditioned air units take over the duties of the onboard aircraft Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) while the aircraft is parked at the gate, the airports take a step toward a greener environment.

This configuration significantly improves the environment by reducing CO2 emissions by as much as 85%, and it also leads to a reduced noise level to the benefit of airport personnel, and the passengers. For the airlines, the Go Green concept means reduced cost with respect to fuel and APU maintenance. All together, we are talking savings of about € 100,000 per year per gate, Elvstroem says.

The AXA 2300 units fulfill requirements of new aircraft
Year by year, we notice an increase in the market demand for 90 kVA power supplies for airport installations. This makes sense as the “One Plug – one GPU” philosophy (i.e. to have one power supply to supply one aircraft inlet) provides the user with the very best voltage quality at the aircraft plug. This is important since the voltage tolerance at the aircraft plug, actually 115 V ± 3 V, tends to narrow down with each new aircraft brought to the market. Other important issues with regard to new aircraft such as the A380 and the Dreamliner entering the scene, are the power factor requirements and the increased overload demands. Since ITW GSE AXA Power is in constant dialogue with major aircraft manufacturers, the   AXA Power compact GPU and the   AXA Power Coil have been designed to cope with the Power Factor 1 requirements. Also, they fulfill the high inrush current requirements (1100 A). Further, the   AXA Power units accept up to 3.5 secs interlock delay which may occur from time to time. Therefore, the AXA 2300 as well as the   AXA Power coil are ideal for the supply of modern aircraft.

Looking forward
ITW GSE AXA Power is happy to announce that we have many big deliveries on the books for the year to come. Once again the UK with major deliveries to London Heathrow as well as to London Gatwick seems to be a high runner. Also a frame work agreement with AdP, Aéroports de Paris, to supply Terminal 1 with a vast number of units over the years to come, will make France appear on the top 3 list along with Saudia Arabia where we are going to supply Prince Mohammad Bin Abdulaziz Intl. Airport, Madinah, with power supplies and pre-conditioned air units. Further, we have reasons to believe that also Russia will challenge the top 3 list. 

Exhibitions
ITW GSE AXA Power will exhibit at various occasions during 2013. Among others at the Passenger Terminal Expo in Geneva, at the Airport Show in Dubai as well as at the Inter Airport Show in Munich of course. Here, we will present the new AXA 2400 unit with new interface facilities to the world market.